Utenti:Michiluzzu Scalisi/English/Double consonants

Double Consonants

The double consonants in the Unified Sicilian Language are very numerous.

At the beginning of a word these double consonants aren't normally written, however in the middle of a word they are written double as they are pronounced. The pronunciations of these double consonants are usually like those of the same single consonant, but with a longer sound. However, as it is with rules, there are a few exceptions.

The first exception is the letter r which, when doubled, does not have the sound of a prolonged "r", but rather that of the "zhe" of the Russian language, as you've read above. The other exception is the letter d. This letter, however, when doubled can have two sounds: (1) the sound of single d, but with a prolonged sound; and (2) the sound of the voiced retroflex plosive, as described above. In order to know which is which, it is necessary for you to memorize them.

The double consonants are truly important in the Unified Sicilian Language, and in certain cases, the only difference between two words can be a consonant and a double consonant. Therefore it's important that you pronounce these sounds correctly, otherwise you can mistake one word for another, causing confusion.

Cluster	Example	Significato italiano	Meaning in English		Example	Significato italiano	Meaning in English
cc/c	picca	poco	few		pica	lancia	spear, pike
	loccu	matto	stupid		locu	luogo	place
dd/d	peddi	pelle	skin		pedi	piede, piedi	foot, feet
mm/m	addummari	domare	to take		addumari	accendere	to light
nn/n	sonnu	sogno	sleep, dream		sonu	suono	sound
	canni	canne	reeds		cani	cane, cani	dog, dogs
pp/p	cappi	cappe	cape, cloak		capi	capi	bosses, chiefs
rr/r	carru	macchina	car		caru	caro	dear, expensive
	parru	parlo	I speak		paru	paio	pair
ss/s	scassa	cancella	he cancels, annuls		casa	casa	house
tt/t	notti	notte	night		noti	noti	you note
	cottu	cotto	cooked		cotu	colto	picked